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Are there
any films as superbly created as Mel Gibson's Braveheart?
With only his second turn behind the camera, Gibson managed
to make an epic that eclipsed not only his past films as an
actor but also a film that even the master directors like
Hitchcock, Ford or Spielberg would have been proud to make.
The seemingly disparate thematic elements ant tonal shifts
Gibson juggles should work against each other, but
instead somehow serve to make a truly great film. Not only
is it an epic adventure with some of the most grandiose battle
and action scenes ever placed on film, but it's also a poignant
romance, a wrenching drama, and even manages to have some
huge laughs in between.
Along with
merely helming this epic, Gibson also stars as William
Wallace, a man at the head of Scotland's revolt against tyrannical
English rule. He didn't want the responsibility, but through
a tragic turn of events feels compelled to take up the fight
to free his homeland. And in a country where the aristocracies
rule only to please the English monarchy, there's little else
to turn to except the people, who must fight for their own
independence. From one battle to the next, Wallace and his
ever growing band of outnumbered freedom fighters lead an
insurrection. Soon Wallace's stature grows to that of a man
of near-mythical stature, which is only fueled by his unpredictability
and unwillingness to bend to the tyrannical political system.
 To
his credit, Gibson treats the material with great respect
and gusto, never resorting to caricature or irony. There's
a passion to his filmmaking that seeps from every frame of
his masterpiece. The battle scenes can hold their own and
indeed rival any screen conflict ever put on film, including
those of Saving Private Ryan, Platoon or the recent Gladiator.
The barbaric quality to the fighting may be hard to watch
for some, but it is entirely appropriate to the subject matter
and Gibson never revels in it.
Also a strong
element of the film is the amazing original score by James
Horner. I had three favorite scores on CD in the summer of
1995, and defying the odds, they were all Horner scores: Braveheart,
Casper and Apollo 13. Casper and Braveheart even opened theatrically
on the same day! How's that for Horner burning the candle
at both ends? But the themes created for Braveheart are among
Horner's best, and unlike some of his other work, aren't just
derivative of his other scores.
Perhaps unfortunately,
Braveheart has still gained a reputation for its graphic depiction
of violence and it is graphic, but that's so little of what
this movie is about. The film has something rare in today's
cinema, and that is soul. I've never made it through the ending
of this movie without being completely moved to tears. I don't
have to watch the entire film to produce this reaction, just
the last half hour will do it to me without fail. I feel it
is a product of its deeply moving story that effects me on
viewing after viewing.
One interesting
aspect to the film for me is that I think it proves Mel Gibson
to be a better director than he is an actor. Both Braveheart
and his directorial debut, the seldom mentioned Man Without
A Face, are superbly crafted films (can't say that about all
of his performances, though!) Yet he's all too often placed
into a narrow category of the "pretty face that can draw
a crowd." Let's face it though, he's not as young as
he used to be and that pretty face hasn't quite aged as well
as some of his contemporaries. Still, it is comforting to
know that he'll never be out of work. Like Clint Eastwood,
I think Gibson will make a most comfortable transition to
working frequently behind the camera.
 In
the end, Mel Gibson got just about everything right with Braveheart.
When the Oscars were handed out that year, the film walked
off with five, including Best Director and Best Picture. In
my estimation, Gibson not only deserved that award, but also
created one of the best pictures of all time.
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
Utilizing
a brand new high definition master, the downconverted 2.35:1
anamorphic widescreen transfer looks wonderful. There's a
dingy, dirty quality to the film and it's cinematography and
the transfer expertly renders its naturalistic feel. Colors
are intentionally somewhat muted, with fleshtones that appear
similar, and yet everything looks completely natural and solid.
Much of this has to do with the lighting of the film on location
to give it a realistic look. Detail is excellent with intricate
things like the cracks of the blue face paint on Gibson during
the battle scenes and the finely textured hair on all the
characters. This extends to every other aspect of the picture
as well with superb image depth that, at times, appears as
though you could stick your hand into the screen.
Blacks are
deep and pure with shadow delineation that also impresses,
also adding depth to the picture, even in the darkest lit
scenes, of which there are many. Compression is where the
disc comes up just a bit short, but with a running time of
nearly three hours and with the included extras something
probably had to give. Some minor compression pixel break up
is visible with just a hint of edge enhancement that creates
some slight shimmer. There's also occasional flecks of dirt
and print nicks visible, but they're seldom distracting. Kudos
to Paramount though. A high definition master of the film
was already created for the film's 1996 laserdisc release
but Paramount wanted to do better. In this age of many studios
doing discs with whatever they've got already it's great to
see another studio want to treat their crown jewels correctly.
 Audio:
How Does The Disc Sound?
The disc
also contains an excellent, although less flashy, English
Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. The track is very well balanced
with strong, natural sounding dialog and effects. The center
channel is absolutely clear with intelligible vocals and never
a sign of any strain. Extension to the left and right in the
front soundstage is impressive with excellent stereo effects
and directionality. Surrounds are used both aggressively and
subtly to convey the accurate mood in the scenes with great
depth and imaging. The .1 LFE gets plenty to do with the thunderous
impact of the horse hoof along with a truly deep presence
in the James Horner score that comes from the mains. That
score that I do love so much sounds amazing with a full, lush
presence that made me pull out the CD to give it yet another
listen.
Paramount,
as they always do, has also included the 2.0 surround track
in English and French with only English subtitles.
Supplements: What Goodies Are There? The highlight
of the supplemental section and of real note here is the screen-specific
audio commentary by Mel Gibson. For the first time ever,
Gibson has sat down to discuss one of his films and the process
of realizing it cinematically. As fans of his would expect,
he's fairly relaxed in his first outing with his sly wit intact.
As he talks about the experience of filming on location, production
difficulties or the cast, he unfortunately does occasionally
fall into lengthy gaps, but it's his first commentary so let's
give him a break. He's perhaps most animated and eager talking
about the epic battle scenes, or to share the appearance of
his brother in the film! But overall he l offers many valuable
comments on the making of the film, if not at a solid pace,
but it is a 178-minute film after all...
 Also
included is a twenty-eight minute feature entitled "Mel
Gibson's Braveheart: A Filmmaker's Passion." This look
behind the scenes focuses on the more serious aspects of the
film and the logistics behind creating the memorable battle
scenes. Interviews with cast and crew are also included, who
discuss at length William Wallace and his legacy. This featurette
is a 1995 promotional creation for the theatrical release,
but still is interesting and informative unlike most promos
of this ilk. Definitely worth a look.
Finally rounding
out the disc are two of the film's original theatrical
trailers, the longer of which is interesting because it
uses score from the prior summer's hit Speed. Not exactly
what I would first think of as a perfect match for a medieval
epic, huh? Anyway, both trailers are non-anamorphic widescreen
with 2.0 surround.
Parting Thoughts
This is yet
another one of those releases where the quality of the film
transcends all other aspects of the presentation. Had the
quality of the disc been shameful, there would be reason to
mourn, but thankfully Paramount has really delivered a disc
worthy of the film. Highly recommended.
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